Apparatus for lining kilns



Jan. 17, 1967 D. R. BYFIELD ETAL 3,298,155

APPARATUS FOR LI NING KIIJNS 3 Sheets5heet 1 Filed Feb. 15, 1966INVENTORS. R. Bgfie/d BY George G. Remit/es Dona/d INVENTORS BgflE/aJan. 17, 1967 D. R. BYFIELD ETAL 3,298,155

APPARATUS FOR LINING KILNS Filed Feb. 15, 1966 s sheets-sheep 11 y 1 4'l I IIIIIIIIIIIIIII.

United States Patent 3,298,155 APPARATUS FOR LINING KILNS Donald R.Byfield, 5616 E. 27th, Kansas City, Mo.

64128, and George G. Reintjes, 9215 Dear-born, Overland Park, Kans.66207 Filed Feb. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 527,529

' 6 Claims. (Cl. 52749) This is a continuation-in-part of ourapplication Serial No. 262,701, filed March 4, 1963, and entitled Methodand Apparatus for Lining Kilns, now abandoned.

This invention relates to a method and apparatus primarily intended foruse in lining rotary kilns with brick or the like whereby atight-fitting lining is provided for the kiln through the exertion, uponthe liner brick, of a simultaneous, substantially equal pressure as thebrick are placed in position abutting the interior face of the kilnshell.

While the use of the present method and apparatus is hereinafterdescribed in connection with the lining of a rotary kiln, it will beappreciated that the subject method and apparatus can be utilized toplace brick or similar lining material in any area where the same mustbe retained against gravity, such as in a tunnel roof, a furnace roof,or a sewer lining, as well as in other areas where the brick orequivalent structural material must be positioned and held in anoverhead position against a backing member. Thus, while the lining of arotary kiln is hereinafter described as a particularly embodiment of thepresent method and apparatus, the same could be utilized in a widevariety of applications.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a method andapparatus for lining rotary kilns wherein, after the liner brick ispositioned adjacent the interior face of the upper half of the kilnshell, at a spaced distance therefrom, a simultaneous, substantiallyequal pressure is exerted upon the liner brick positioned adjacent theupper half of the kiln shell whereby to move the same into tightengagement with the interior face of the kiln shell.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a method andapparatus for lining kilns where, when temperature and environmentalconditions otherwise permit the same, it will not be necessary to rotatethe kiln during the lining thereof as has heretofore been necessaryduring the lining of most kilns.

A yet further aim of the invention is to provide a method of lining arotary kiln wherein the liner brick I is positioned adjacent theinterior face of the kiln shell upon a brick-supporting unit, meansassociated with the brick-supporting unit then being actuated to exert asimultaneously, substantially equal pressure upon the brick carried bythe unit whereby to move the same into tight engagement with theinterior face of the shell, the brick then being keyed in its final,fixed position, prior to removal of the brick-supporting unit.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide apparatus for liningrotary kilns which includes a rigid member spaced from the interior faceof the kiln shell, there being a supporting assembly so positioning saidrigid member, the rigid member supporting a flexible, expandable memberin the nature of a hose or the like, there being an articulated frameformed from a plurality of interconnected shoes disposed in overlyingrelationship to the flexible, expandable member, the liner brick beingsupported on the shoes whereby to initially position the brick adjacentthe interior face of the kiln shell, the hose being coupled with asource of fluid, such as air or other equivalent, the fluid being underpressure whereby the same may be delivered into the flexible, expandablemember to thereby cause expansion thereof and move the brick intoengagement with the interior face of the kiln shell,

all of the brick of a given ring being simultaneously so moved undersubstantially equal pressure.

It is a yet further aim of this invention to provide apparatus forlining kilns which may be disposed within the kiln and movedlongitudinally therealong during the lining operation, but yet permitfree access to the remainder of the kiln area during the liningoperation, the apparatus being easily shifted from one position toanother.

Other objects will become apparent from the following specification andaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a rotary kiln, looking thereintoand showing the apparatus for lining the kiln in position therewithin;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, elevational view showing a portion of theapparatus and particularly to manner in which the same is supportedwithin the kiln;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal, sectional view through the kiln and theapparatus, showing the apparatus positioned therewithin;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary view showing a portion of theapparatus and its relationship to the liner brick;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view through a portion of the apparatusillustrated in FIG. 4 showing the flexible, expandable member in itscollapsed position and the brick positioned away from the interior faceof the shell; and

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 but showing the flexible member inits expanded condition with the liner brick positioned against theinterior face of the shell.

It is well known that rotary kilns of an elongated, cylindricalconfiguration and now used in many industries for the purposes of dryingor heating materials, are subject to relining from time to time due tothe deterioration of the refractory tile or brick which is disposedalong the major portion of the interior face of such kilns. Suchrelining has become a tedious and expensive task due to the fact thatrings of brick must be laid in complete circumscribing relationship tothe interior face of the kiln shell and, therefore, means must beprovided for holding the brick of a portion of a given ring in positionwhile the remaining brick of said ring is laid. Such means haveheretofore taken the form of jack assemblies which are positioned insuch a manner as to hold onehalf of a ring of brick in position, thekiln then being rotated, while another one-quarter of the ring of brickis laid and subsequently again rotated, while the final one-quarter ofthe ring of brick is laid and the entire ring keyed.

Other methods and apparatus for lining rotary kilns with brick havetaken the form of arcuate members having a plurality of jackscrewassemblies associated therewith, which assemblies each retain inposition a given course of brick as the same is laid in place. All ofthe previously known methods and apparatus have been costly,timeconsuming, and have, upon occasion, resulted in the kiln shell beingforced to an out-of-round condition.

It is, therefore, contemplated by the present invention that apparatuswill be provided which will eliminate the necessity of rotating a kilnduring the lining thereof with brick and which, as a result of thesimultaneous, substantially equal application of pressure upon a givenring or rings of brick as they are laid into place, will not cause thekiln shell to assume an out-of-round condition but rather, will snuglyand tightly fit the liner brick against the shell whereby the ring orrings may then subsequently 'be keyed into a final fixed position.

The apparatus for accomplishing the foregoing is adapted to bepositioned within a rotary kiln 10, which kiln has an outer shell 12normally of metal of suitable strength and of an elongated, cylindricalconfiguration, the shell 12 having an exterior face 14 and an interiorface 16, the liner brick 18 being positioned against the inferior face16 of the shell 12 when the shell is lined.

To position the liner brick 18 pursuant to the present invention, thereis provided a scaffolding rig, broadly designated 20, which rig 21)includes a wheeled carriage assembly 22 and suitable upright such as 24whereby to support, in a horizontal position at substantially the centerline of kiln 16, a platform 26.

The wheeled carriage assemblies 22 are four in number in the embodimentof the invention chosen for illustration, each assembly including a pairof wheels 28, there being a jack 30 disposed between the wheels 28. Asseen in FIGS. 1 and 3 of the drawings, the wheel assemblies 22 aresupported within the kiln by a pair of spaced trackways 32, two of saidassemblies resting on each of the trackways whereby, when the wheelassemblies 22 are in the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 of thedrawings, the entire rig 20 may be rolled longitudinally of the kiln 10on the trackways 32 to thus move the same from one position to anotheralong the kiln 10.

When the rig has been moved to the desired position within the kiln, thejacks 30 are lowered to thereby raise the wheels 28 from engagement withtrackways 32 and thereby preclude rolling of the rig 20 while the liningoperation takes place at a given position within the kiln. If it isnecessary to rotate the kiln during the lining operation, the wheelassemblies 22 can be turned to the I position shown in FIG. 2 of thedrawings, whereby they extend transversely of the kiln and may ridealong the liner brick as the kiln is rotated to maintain platform 26 ina constantly horizontal position. Movement of the kiln with respect tothe rig 20- when the kiln is rotated, is also facilitated by theprovision of casters 34 which are carried at the outer ends of theframework which supports the platform 26. The uprights 24 are coupledwith suitable longitudinally and transversely extending frame members,such as 36, whereby to provide support for a plurality of beams such as38, the beams in turn, supporting the platform 26. Thus, it will be seenthat there is provided a supporting assembly for the platform 26 whichis sufficiently strong for the purposes intended, but which is alsomobile so that it may be moved from one position to another during thelining operation. Note also, that the uprights 24 are spacedsulficiently apart, viewing FIG. 1, so that a forklift truck or othermeans may be driven vtherebetween longitudinally of the kiln to deliverbricks to platform 26 as this becomes necessary.

The brick-supporting unit, broadly designated by the numeral 40, iscarried by the framework members 36 through a pair of longitudinallyextending beams 42, each having a pipe 44 resting thereupon, each of thepipes 44, in turn, supporting a pair of jacks 46, it being noted thatjacks 46 all have a saddle 48 at the lower end thereof so that thebrick-supporting unit 40 may be shifted longitudinally of the kiln orthe framework members 36 by moving said saddles 48 longitudinally alongtheir corresponding pipes 44.

Each pair of jacks 46 is coupled with a transversely extending jack beam50 by means of a plate 52, which plate 52 extends longitudinally of thekiln as shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings. Jack beam 50 is insubstantially parallel relationship with the platform 26 and extendstransversely of the kiln. The jack beam 50 carries a pair ofspaced-apart supports 54 which extend vertically from the jack beam 50and cooperate to support, adjacent the normally uppermost interior faceof the kiln shell, a rigid member 56, such rigid member 56 being arcuatein configuration and conforming to the :arc of the upper portion of thekiln to be lined.

In the embodiment chosen for illustration, the rigid member 56 is in thenature of a channel whereby to present a web 58 and a pair of laterallyextending flanges 60, said flanges 60 extending from the web toward theinterior face of the kiln. The arcuate rigid member is connected to thejack beam 50 adjacent the outer ends thereof by a pair of brackets 62,there also being a jack 64- extending between each of the ends of jackbeams and the corresponding end of the arcuate rigid member 56.

The rigid member 56, particularly the web portion 58 thereof, supportsat least one flexible, expandable member 66 in the nature of a hose orthe like, the embodiment of the invention chosen for illustrationshowing four such elongated, flexible, expandable members 66 used inconnection with .the kiln lining apparatus. In the illustratedembodiment, the first length 68 of the expandable member extends fromone end of the rigid member to a point substantially one-quarter of thelength thereof, the member 68 then passing through an opening in the web58 of the member 56 to present a coupling 70 which may be connected to asource of fluid under pressure. The second length 72 of member 66extends from length 68 to the next length 74, and length 74 extendsonwardly around arcuate member 56 to the fourth length 76 whereby, inessence, a continuous, flexible, expandable member is provided, the samehaving four individual lengths in the embodiment shown, although it willbe appreciated that two lengths may be utilized or, for that matter, asingle length could be utilized. The flexible, expandable member 66 iscoupled with a source of air under pressure whereby, when air isintroduced thereinto, said member will expand.

Disposed in overlying relationship to the member 66 is an articulatedframe 78, the articulated frame 78 taking the form of a plurality ofinterconnected shoes 80, each of the shoes being U-shaped in transverse,crosssectional configuration whereby to present a bight 82 and :a pairof normally depending legs 84, the legs being in opposed relationshipand embracing the flanges 60' of the rigid member 56, all as best shownin FIG. 6 of the drawings.

Shoes 80 are interconnected by coupling plates 86 as best shown in FIG,5 of the drawings, said plates 86 interconnecting the shoes 80 in such amanner that the shoes may shift relative to one another as the same aremoved into a position against the inner or hot face 88 of the linerbrick 18. It will be noticed that the member 66 is, therefore, confinedbetween the rigid member 56 and particularly the web 58 thereof, and theshiftable, articulated frame 78, the liner brick 18 being disposed inoverlying relationship .to the frame 78 and between said frame 78 andthe interior face 16 of the kiln 10.

The apparatus hereinabove described is used to carry out the followingmethod of lining the kiln with brick.

' The apparatus is initially moved into the kiln to the position whereit is desired to line the interior face of the kiln with brick. Theapparatus is locked into position through the utilization of jacks 30,and the rigid member 56 is moved into the desired spaced relationshipfrom the interior face 16 of kiln 10 by means of the jacks 46 and thejacks 64. Oncethe rigid member has been moved into the desired position,the member 66 is placed in overlying relationship thereto, the member66, or the individual lengths thereof, being coupled with a source ofair under pressure (not shown), it being contemplated that an aircompressor may be supported by the rig 20 at a suitable location wherebyto present a completely integral lining unit.

The articulated frame 78 is then disposed in overlying relationship tothe member 66 and the liner brick are placed on the articulated frame ata position spaced from the interior face 16 of the kiln 10 in the mannershown in FIG. 5 of the drawings. The positioning of the brick commencesfrom each side of the kiln and starts atop the previously laid lowerhalf section of brick. The brick are then laid in a continuous ring andin as many courses as may be desired toward the top of the kiln which iscommonly known as the key point.

During laying of the brick about the upper half of the kiln, airpressure may be introduced into the flexible member 66 whereby to retainthe brick in tight-fitting engagement to the interior face 16 of thekiln shell 12. It

will be appreciated that such air pressure will not be applied until thebrick have first been positioned atop the articulated frame 78 in themanner shown in FIG. 5 of the drawings.

Once this positioning has been accomplished and a sufficient number ofbrick laid in a ring or a course, air pressure is introduced into member66, or, if member 66 includes a plurality of lengths, such as shown inthe drawings, air pressure is simultaneously introduced into each of thelengths 68, 72, 74 and 76 of member 66, whereby to expand the same andthereby cause the shifting movement of the articulated frame 78 and theindividual shiftable shoes 80 thereof toward the interior face 16 of theshell 12. Expansion of member 66, or the individual lengths thereof, isall in an outward direction inasmuch as the rigid member 56 is securelyfixed in position by means of the jack beam 50 and the supports 54 ashereinabove described. Thus, as the member 66 expands, frame 78 is movedoutwardly, the individual shoes being allowed to move with respect toone another whereby a continuous, simultaneous and substantially equalpressure is brought to bear on each of the plurality of bricks whichhave been previously positioned adjacent the interior face 16 of kiln10.

In this regard, it will be appreciated that the provision of anarticulated frame such as 78, formed from a plurality of individuallyshiftable, but interconnected shoes such as 80, allows compensation forbrick of varying sizes, although it will be appreciated that it isdesirable to have all of the brick 18 of substantially the same size andconfiguration. Furthermore, the application of simultaneous,substantially equal pressure on each of the brick which have beenpositioned in overlying relationship to the frame 78 as they are movedinto engagement with the interior face 16 of the shell 12, preventsforcing of the shell into and out-of-round condition and assures a snugfit between the cold face of the brick and the interior face 16 of shell12.

Once a ring of brick has been moved into position by the methodhereinabove described, the brick forming the ring are keyed into a finaland fixed position in the conventional manner which may be accomplishedby positioning a jack between the spaced-apart brick at the open end ofthe ring and, through exerting pressure by the jack, tightening thebricks in a given ring prior to inserting the key brick or bricks.

Once the brick have been keyed into a final and fixed position, the airpressure within member 66 is released whereby to allow the same tocollapse, thereby moving the frame 78 out of engagement with the innerface of the brick 18' to then allow the assembly to be moved to the nextzone of brick to be applied as a liner to the shell. This procedure isrepeated until such time as the kiln is completely lined with brick andit will be appreciated that, at no time during the lining procedure, isit necessary to rotate the shell and that, therefoFe, a kiln may beeasily, quickly and economically lined through the utilization of themethod and apparatus hereinabove described. In certain instances,however, due to the location of a 6 kiln, such as outdoors, it isnecessary to rotate the kiln during the lining thereof to preventtemperature changes in the portion thereof exposed to the sun, forinstance, but this may be readily and easily accomplished by moving thewheel assemblies of the rig 20 into the position shown in FIG. 2 of thedrawings and thus rotating the kiln, it being noted that the kiln isrotatable as a result of a plurality of ribs which circumscribe the kilnat spaced-apart points, the ribs each riding on a set of opposedtrunnions 92 to thereby permit rotation of the kiln the desired amount,if such is necessary due to temperature conditions or other factors.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus for lining the interior face of the shell of a rotary kilnwith brick comprising:

a rigid member spaced from the interior face of the kiln shell;

means for adjustably positioning said rigid member with respect to saidface of the shell;

at least one flexible, expandable: member overlying said rigid memberand carried thereby;

an articulated frame overlying said flexible member,

the liner brick resting upon said frame; and

means for expanding said member to exert a simultaneous, substantiallyequal pressure upon the liner brick and thereby cause the same to moveinto engagement with said interior face of the kiln shell.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said rigid member has aweb and a pair of opposed flanges, said flanges extending toward saidframe, said flexible, expandable member being carried on said web andbetween said flanges.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2, said frame comprising a pluralityof interconnected shoes shiftable with respect to one another.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein each of said shoes isU-shaped in transverse cross section whereby to present a bight and apair of legs.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4, the bights of the shoes being inopposed, overlying relationship to the web of the rigid member, the legsof the shoes embracing the rigid member.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, the flexible, expandable memberbeing confined between the rigid member and the articulated frame.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,296,312 3/1919ORourke 61-84 X 1,382,668 6/1921 ORourke 61-84 X 3,075,359 1/1963 Clark52-749 X 3,206,824 9/ 1965 Cerutti 6184 X FOREIGN PATENTS 1,163,35612/1958 France. 1,251,314 12/1960 France.

856,356 12/ 1960 Great Britain.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner.

J. L. RIDGILL, Assistant Examiner.

1. APPARATUS FOR LINING THE INTERIOR FACE OF THE SHELL OF A ROTARY KILNWITH BRICK COMPRISING: A RIGID MEMBER SPACED FROM THE INTERIOR FACE OFTHE KILN SHELL; MEANS FOR ADJUSTABLY POSITIONING SAID RIGID MEMBER WITHRESPECT TO SAID FACE OF THE SHELL; AT LEAST ONE FLEXIBLE, EXPANDABLEMEMBER OVERLYING SAID RIGID MEMBER AND CARRIED THEREBY; AN ARTICULATEDFRAME OVERLYING SAID FLEIBLE MEMBER, THE LINER BRICK RESTING UPON SAIDFRAME; AND MEANS FOR EXPANDING SAID MEMBER TO EXERT A SIMULTANEOUS,SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL PRESSURE UPON THE LINER BRICK AND THEREBY CAUSE THESAME TO MOVE INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID INTERIOR FACE OF THE KILN SHELL.